Lester Leutwiler Chief Illiniwek Headdresses, Costume, and Accessories, ca. 1924-1928, and 1977

Lester Glen Leutwiler (1907-1993) was the first portrayer of the Chief Illiniwek mascot at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. Leutwiler was born in Urbana on April 1, 1907, to Oscar Adolf Leutwiler, a mechanical engineering professor at the University, and Elise Verena (Kaeser) Leutwiler. He received a degree in mechanical engineering from the University in 1929 and worked at Pet, Inc., for the majority of his career. In 1930, Lester married Anna Louise Still (1907-1989), a dietician and fellow graduate of the University of Illinois. The couple had three children, Ann (Gasaway), Jean (Brandenburger), and Robert Leutwiler.

Leutwiler developed a deep interest in indigenous culture through his time in the Boy Scouts of America, in which he earned the rank of Eagle Scout and member of the Order of the Arrow. In August 1924, Leutwiler traveled to Denmark to participate in the International Boy Scout Jamboree, where he learned a Sioux dance from scoutmaster Ralph Hubbard. The following year, Leutwiler constructed the first artifacts that became his Chief Illiniwek costume while attending Hubbard’s Camp Ten-Sleep in Elbert, Colorado. In the spring of 1925, Leutwiler first performed what he had learned about Native American dance at an annual senior event at Urbana High School. Raymond Dvorak, the director of the Urbana High School band and the University of Illinois Marching Band, attended the event. Dvorak was intrigued by the performance and invited Leutwiler during his sophomore year at the University of Illinois to perform this same dance during and Illinois football game.

On October 30, 1926, Leutwiler debuted the Chief Illiniwek mascot at the halftime performance of the Illinois at Pennsylvania football game. Though his character, which originated from an amalgamation of indigenous culture, existed prior to 1926, Leutwiler was the first to portray it. Performing with the University Band under the direction of A. A. Harding and Ray Dvorak, Leutwiler exchanged his tomahawk for a peace pipe and linked arms with Illinois student George Adams, playing the role of William Penn using a costume loaned by the competing university. By November 11, Chief Illiniwek had been declared a regular feature of Illini games. Leutwiler would portray the Chief until the end of the 1928 football season.

Leutwiler continued his association with the Boy Scouts of America through his role as a scoutmaster and made appearances at the University to mark anniversaries of Chief Illiniwek’s debut. Leutwiler passed away on February 10, 1993. Various students continued to perform as the University's Chief Illiniwek until the mascot’s last performance on February 21, 2007.

Guiliano, Jennifer Elizabeth. “An American Spectacle: College Mascots and the Performance of Tradition.” PhD diss. University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, 2009.

“Lester Glen Leutwiler.” Find a Grave. Accessed November 17, 2024. https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/94465732/lester-glen-leutwiler.

“Lester Leutwiler; Retired Pet Executive.” St. Louis Post-Dispatch. February 21, 1993.